The devastation caused by Hurricane Matthew has claimed its first life in the U.S.

The sheriff of St. Lucie County, Florida, has confirmed the storm prevented emergency responders from reaching a woman in her late 50s who went into cardiac arrest in the middle of the night, ABC News reported.

By the time the crew was able to navigate the 68-mph winds to reach the woman, she had already died, the St. Lucie Fire Department said.

1st US death reported. St. Lucie County, Fla, woman died in #HurricaneMatthew after EMR crews couldn't get to her. https://t.co/Ao5m1XnbwF

Hurricane Matthew has already claimed scores of lives across Haiti, Cuba and the Caribbean, with Reuters reporting that the death toll in Haiti alone has already exceeded 800.